Rheinberger Choral Works
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Composer or Director: Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger
Label: ASV
Magazine Review Date: 6/1997
Media Format: CD or Download
Media Runtime: 70
Mastering:
DDD
Catalogue Number: CDDCA989
Tracks:
Composition | Artist Credit |
---|---|
Mass |
Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger, Composer
Geoffrey Webber, Conductor Gonville and Caius College Choir, Cambridge Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger, Composer |
Requiem |
Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger, Composer
Christopher Monks, Organ Geoffrey Webber, Conductor Gonville and Caius College Choir, Cambridge Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger, Composer |
(3) Sacred Choruses |
Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger, Composer
Geoffrey Webber, Conductor Gonville and Caius College Choir, Cambridge Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger, Composer |
(12) Meditations, Movement: No. 3, Canzonetta |
Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger, Composer
Christopher Monks, Organ Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger, Composer |
(12) Meditations, Movement: No. 7, Intermezzo |
Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger, Composer
Christopher Monks, Organ Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger, Composer |
Ave Regina caelorum |
Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger, Composer
Christopher Monks, Organ Geoffrey Webber, Conductor Gonville and Caius College Choir, Cambridge Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger, Composer |
Wie lieblich sind deine Wohnungen |
Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger, Composer
Geoffrey Webber, Conductor Gonville and Caius College Choir, Cambridge Helen Cole, Harp Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger, Composer |
Ich liebe, weil erhöret der Herr |
Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger, Composer
Geoffrey Webber, Conductor Gonville and Caius College Choir, Cambridge Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger, Composer |
Ave Maris Stella |
Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger, Composer
Geoffrey Webber, Conductor Gonville and Caius College Choir, Cambridge Joseph (Gabriel) Rheinberger, Composer |
Author:
In youth it was natural to think of Rheinberger as a dull old stick and then not to think of him at all. Later, grown wary of abusive phrases with ‘old’ in their midst, one resorted to more respectfully dismissive epithets such as ‘worthy’. Now comes a chance for second thoughts. All of the items here, save the Mass, are claimed as the subjects of world premiere recordings, and they include a Requiem, his fourth and last, written in 1900 and a notable addition to the catalogue. Of the shorter pieces, none can be called trivial, and the Mass for double choir, dedicated to Pope Leo XIII and winning for its composer the knighthood of Gregory the Great, impresses as a masterwork of serene faith and unostentatious skill.
The performances themselves contribute strongly. This is a choir of well-matched young voices, secure in matters of balance and intonation, sensitive in phrasing and nuance. Out of their ranks they produce some admirable soloists, and their sopranos are untouched by tremolo, hardness or surface-scratch. A particularly pleasant composition is the Wie lieblich for women’s voices and harp. The organ solos are also well played, the Canzonetta an unexpectedly lilting melody, the Intermezzo one of those expertly written pieces which makes it seem as though the notes lie naturally beneath the player’s hands and feet. The recording was made in the Chapel, not of Caius College but of St Catherine’s up the road, and is ideally clear without being dry.
So how does the ‘worthy old stick’ emerge? Creditably, no doubt, but that is another of those deadly terms of faint praise. The troublesome thing is that he is so utterly untroubling. He is the soul of well-governed moderation. A text such as the one (“Anima nostra” from Three Sacred Choruses) about the soul being freed like a sparrow from the snare of the hunter moves him to venture a little dotted rhythm by way of celebration, but he will go no further, and when Geoffrey Webber in his helpful booklet-notes, described the “Laudate Dominum” (from Op. 133) as “a rousting paean of praise” one feels that some qualifying adverb, such as ‘relatively’, might tactfully be introduced.'
The performances themselves contribute strongly. This is a choir of well-matched young voices, secure in matters of balance and intonation, sensitive in phrasing and nuance. Out of their ranks they produce some admirable soloists, and their sopranos are untouched by tremolo, hardness or surface-scratch. A particularly pleasant composition is the Wie lieblich for women’s voices and harp. The organ solos are also well played, the Canzonetta an unexpectedly lilting melody, the Intermezzo one of those expertly written pieces which makes it seem as though the notes lie naturally beneath the player’s hands and feet. The recording was made in the Chapel, not of Caius College but of St Catherine’s up the road, and is ideally clear without being dry.
So how does the ‘worthy old stick’ emerge? Creditably, no doubt, but that is another of those deadly terms of faint praise. The troublesome thing is that he is so utterly untroubling. He is the soul of well-governed moderation. A text such as the one (“Anima nostra” from Three Sacred Choruses) about the soul being freed like a sparrow from the snare of the hunter moves him to venture a little dotted rhythm by way of celebration, but he will go no further, and when Geoffrey Webber in his helpful booklet-notes, described the “Laudate Dominum” (from Op. 133) as “a rousting paean of praise” one feels that some qualifying adverb, such as ‘relatively’, might tactfully be introduced.'
Discover the world's largest classical music catalogue with Presto Music.
Gramophone Digital Club
- Digital Edition
- Digital Archive
- Reviews Database
- Full website access
From £8.75 / month
SubscribeGramophone Full Club
- Print Edition
- Digital Edition
- Digital Archive
- Reviews Database
- Full website access
From £11.00 / month
Subscribe
If you are a library, university or other organisation that would be interested in an institutional subscription to Gramophone please click here for further information.